The Love Song of Dipper Pines
by Anonymous Traveler
Summary: Dipper doesn't think he'll ever get over Wendy... until Lily walks into the Mystery Shack. Now, he can't get her out of his head, and she can't stop wondering how he feels for her. Will Dipper be able to find love? Or will someone try to prevent them from ever realizing their dream? Story requested by dippers girl. Lily is not my O/C; she is a friend of mine. Expect lots of fluff!
1. Chapter 1: Love At First Sight

Chapter 1: Love At First Sight

Lily saw the wasp before her grandfather did. And she did what only came natural to her: she rolled down the truck window and watched it gradually fly it's way out unto the highway.

"Lily, put the window up. I already have the air conditionin' on, and all that wind is distractin'."

"Sorry, Pop," she replied. Her grandfather was usually crotchety, but he used a weak brand of it on her. And whenever he looked into her tranquil eyes, he couldn't help but feel less cranky. Lily had that affect on people.

Lily was being co-pilot for Pop, checking an old yellowed map that was torn down the middle and taped up again, giving him directions while he drove. He claimed he couldn't read past the tip of his nose, so Lily was forced to "volunteer" to aid him. She understood entirely why her grandfather would want to drive somewhere in the middle of nowhere to relive in his old town, but she didn't understand why she had to go along for the ride. After all, who would want to live in a place called Gravity Falls?

She knew her parents were trying to keep her safe, but she felt that they could have at least picked a relative who didn't need a kid giving him confusing map directions. There were her aunts, her uncles, her cousins, even a couple of second cousins who would be willing to take care of her. But she knew the real reason why her parents were dead set on choosing her grandfather over anyone else: he was dying. He knew it, his kids knew it, his grandkids knew it, everyone knew it but no one spoke about it, so no one really knew how much the other knew about his illness. His cancer. Pop wasn't too old. He was barely pushing sixty three. But he could feel his life coming to a close.

Lily had overheard the conversation between her parents over why Pop was the least ideal, but the _only_ choice they had: he had made a promise to Gran-Gran before she passed away at the age of sixty five that he would look out for Lily, their only grand-daughter. Lily sighed forlornly at the thought. They had been close, Lily and Gran-Gran.

Another reason why her parents had Pop do this crazy chore of care-taking for his grand-daughter was because since he was dying, there wasn't much more that he could do except to try and fulfill his dying wife's request. And the only way to do that, was to take her somewhere fairly secluded, and protect her there.

Lily looked up from the creased map, and saw their fast approaching destination on a sign to the right of the highway: Gravity Falls. The dusty town that Pop had grown up in. The dusty town that she now had to grow up in as well.

But on their way into town, Pop pulled over into the parking lot of a tourist trap shop along the roadside. He got out of the beat-up red truck, and Lily followed him, with an obvious question furrowed on her brow.

"Jest stopping to see an old acquaintance," he said in answer to her unasked question. "Then we'll be on our way into town. Hmm," he said to himself. "The place hasn't changed much, but why not we go inside and see for ourselves?" He walked to the porch, and opened the front door to the shop.

Lily read the enormous sign posted on the roof of the building. _Mystery Hack? _she thought. She followed behind her grandfather, a little timid, a little impatient, and a lot confused. What would she find here?

Dipper Pines was wiping a jar of eyeballs clean of dust and fingerprint smears. His next job would be to dust the jackalope in the museum wing of the place, and then to restock a shelf with bobble heads of his great uncle. Just another day in the Mystery Shack. Although half the time, he felt as though he were in a demented version of "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium."

His twin sister, Mabel, was goofing off in front of the counter. She kept rearranging the candy, trying to determine which brand was more worthy of being bought the most. Soos, one of the actual employees at the shop, was fixing a light in the ceiling and was balancing precariously on a chair. Then there was Wendy, sitting behind the register, reading a magazine, and still looking as though she were bored sitting there for hours at a time. Dipper fixated his gaze on the teenager.

She was one of the coolest girls, maybe one of the coolest people, he had ever met. She was smart, resourceful, nice, and had lovely red hair. And she was totally out of his league.

He once told her his true feelings, even though he knew fully well that he didn't have a chance with her. She of course told him that she didn't have those sort of feelings for him, but that he was the funnest guy she ever met, and if it weren't for him, her summer would be a total bust. Even so, he felt heart-broken all the same.

_I know I can't like her,_ he thought. _But I can't imagine falling in love with any other girl. It's too impossible. It's illogical. It's- it's-_

His train of thought was interrupted by an elderly man who walked right through the shop as though it were a familiar place to him. But Dipper didn't remember ever seeing him here before. Everyone, except Wendy, paused in their activities.

"Is Stanford Pines around anywhere?" he asked in a no-nonsense manner.

"Grunkle Stan," called Mabel. "It's for you!"

"All right, I'm comin', I'm comin'," answered the equally cranky old voice of Stan Pines. He came through the museum doorway, and entered the shop. "What's the emergency?"

"Stanford Pines," remarked the old man in remembrance. "It's been a while."

"Do I know you?" asked Stan, confused.

"Remember the boating incident of '73?" the old man asked him.

Stan paused in thought, trying to conjure the memory the man had spoken of. "Or how about meatball fight of '66? "

"Oh yeah, I remember that!" Stan slapped his forehead in sudden remembrance. "Old Popper, where've ya been all this time? Haven't seen ya in ages." Stan turned to his grand-nephew and grand-niece, who were puzzled by this new development. "Kids, this is my old pal, Popper."

"Back in high school, they called me Popper because the way I played at basketball, I just seemed to pop across the court," the man explained.

"Never let the team down," said Stan, wrapping a shoulder around his old friend.

Dipper didn't think that a conman like his great-uncle could have friends, but he was in for another surprise. Peering through the front door, and slowly walking in and closing it behind her, was the most beautiful girl Dipper had ever seen. He dropped the rag he was using to shine the jar, and just stared.

It was her eyes. Those eyes like jewels, set in a perfectly sculpted face. The way her hair fell around her face was just flawless, like a rainbow that makes a perfect arch in the sky. Her fingers seemed so delicate and gentle, like they couldn't hurt anything in the world. Dipper just couldn't stop looking at her eyes. Those eyes, like warm flames and cool water at the same time.

Dipper didn't realize he was staring until his sister snapped him out of his trance. "Dipper? Dipper!" She waved a hand in front of his enraptured eyes, and he abruptly came to his senses. Mabel had been introducing herself and some of the other residents and employees of the Shack to Lily, and had awaken Dipper luckily before the girl could catch him staring at her.

"Dipper, this is Lily," said Mabel.

"Hi," said Lily, shyly. Dipper heart leaped. Her voice! It was so soothing, that it put him instantly at ease. Which made him strangely more nervous. At the moment, he felt so awkward, he had to escape from the room.

"Oh, I just realized I need to elope the dust," he remarked. "I mean jackalope the dust! I mean-" he groaned in frustration of his blithering behavior, and rushed behind the curtain, tripping over his own feet in the process. He got back on his feet, and continued running inside.

_What was that all about?_ Lily asked herself. She wished he hadn't left. She thought the kid was kinda cute. OK, _very_ cute. A little awkward maybe, but that made him cute too. _I hope he doesn't think I'm weird,_ she thought. Unfortunately for Lily, that was exactly her problem.


	2. Chapter 2: Great-uncle Jack

Chapter 2: Great-uncle Jack

For the longest moment no one said anything. But a quick glance at Pop told her that she had done something wrong. But what?

Then it hit her. _My contacts! I never put on my contacts!_ "Uh- I'm going back to the truck now, Pop," Lily said turning towards the door as she said so. She hurried out of the store.

"Oh brother, Dipper scared _another_ one away," muttered Stan.

"Don't blame him, she's just bashful," replied Pop. "But I need to get goin' anyhow. My brother is expectin' me, and I don't want to keep him waitin'."

"Be sure to stop by again and buy something," called Stan as Pop exited.

"I won't," he called back, closing the door.

"Ha ha! That joker," said Stan. "But seriously, he's gonna buy something next time or get out. I can't take cheapskates."

Mabel ran into the museum area of the Mystery Shack, and searched for Dipper. She found him frantically sweeping dust in a corner.

"Dipper!"

He jumped, smacking the broom in the dust, and sending clouds of it blowing into their faces. Between coughs, Mabel asked. "What happened to you out there?"

"Wha- wha-wha- what do you mean?" he asked, resweeping the dust back into a pile.

"When we were talking to that girl, you practically flew in here," she clarified.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," he replied, turning his back to his twin. "I'm just doing my job."

"Are you hiding something?"

"N-n- nothing! I'm not hiding anything? W-w- what's there to hide?"

"You're stuttering. You stutter when you're hiding something."

"Wha-at? Pssshhh. Th-that's ridiculous. It's not like it has anything to do that nice girl Lily, if that's what you mean." He covered his hands over his mouth.

"AHA! I _knew_ it!"

"Wait! It-it's not what it seems!"

"You like Lily!"

"I don't like-"

"Admit it!" She tried to jump on him, but the broom he held between them barred her way.

"No! I'm not gonna say-"

"Admit it!"

"No!"

"Admit it!"

"Never!"

"ADMIT IT!"

"Hey what's goin' on in there? You two breakin' somethin'? Don't make me come in there and demand an explanation."

"O-OK, fine!" he loudly whispered, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "I … sorta...like Lily."

"I knew it," she smirked with triumph.

"Just as a friend!" he clarified. "I mean, she seems nice, you know?"

"You're totally crushing on her!" she squealed.

"Would you be quiet about it? I don't want everyone to know about it."

"Especially Wendy," said Mabel batting her eyelashes.

"Just don't say anything," he told her. "If she comes back, I don't want her to think I'm a chicken."

"Oh don't worry, I won't mess it up for you. You can do that without my help." She laughed, and exited back into the gift shop. Dipper sighed, and began dusting the jackalope, positive that after his performance that Lily wouldn't want to bother showing up at the Shack any time soon.

Lily nearly blew it. She nearly blew it. She knew as Pop pulled out of the driveway and onto the road leading into town that she wouldn't be hearing the end of it. She was still struggling to place the contacts in her eyes while her grandfather badgered her.

"How many times have you been reminded to wear those contacts?" demanded Pop.

"All my life," she replied.

"So how come you didn't wear them when we were out in public?"

"I forgot to."

"You forgot? The one time you forget could put the next moment of your life in danger, do you understand that? You're not being homeschooled anymore; you're in the outside world, where there's dangers and wicked people who will try to hurt and kill you!"

"But that's not my fault!" Lily yelled. "I don't know anything about who's out to get me."

"That's true," he replied in a more gentle tone. "You're not safe or experienced, which is why we're here."

"Is that why we had to move all the way out to this old town?"

"It's a small town, not many things goin' on, no one askin' any questions, and it's where I've grown up and told no one about. Few people, few problems. If anything happens here, no one notices. Hardly anyone knows that this town exists. It's a safe place where you'll be able to learn how to defend yourself without trouble."

"But you told me that all sorts of supernatural things happen here in this town," I mentioned. "How are we sure that this place is any safer than back home?"

"Because anything that's 'out of the ordinary' that lives here is doin' the same thing that we are: hidin'. Stayin' safe. Stayin' alive. It's all about survival. Whatever's out there, chances are they're more afraid of you than you are of them."

"But what if something supernatural tries to find-"

"Don't worry about how safe you are, Lily," Pop said. "That's my job. Just try to settle in and live a new life here. My half-brother, Jack B. Nimble, is going to help us train you to fight for yourself and make sure you're takin' cared of. Now get those contacts fitted in. We're about to turn into his drive, and he might have visitors."

Lily peeled back her lids and blinked until the eye lenses fitted properly, watching as the truck turned up a forested area and into a dirt road. The surrounding pines made everything shadowy and spooky, and her foreboding feelings began to well up inside her. In all the years that she visited Pop and Gran-Gran, neither of them had mentioned anything about Pop's half-brother Jack B. Nimble. She had wondered about that ever since her parents told her to pack a few suitcases and be ready to get on the road with Pop, but it wasn't until today that she realized the reason why: he knew about the family secret. He understood what danger that her family was in, or maybe even he was a part of the secret as well, there was no way that she could know now. But she knew that it had to be the only other reason why Pop would go to the trouble of bothering some half-sibling who he probably hadn't spoken to in years. And judging by the growing remoteness of his dwelling, it seemed that he didn't get out much.

"Well, here we are," said Pop, finally pulling into the narrow dirt driveway behind another rusty truck. "Great-uncle Jack's home."

Great-uncle Jack was supposed to have a small farm on a mountain. It was more of a shabby bungalow with a dilapidated chicken coop built into the side of it. There was a gaping hole in the roof, and one of the windowpanes in the top floor was smashed broken. The screen door on the front porch was almost unhinged, and the paint had peeled so much off the building, the exposed wood siding underneath had turned a withered gray color. There wasn't any sign of any chickens, but a miniature horse was eating dandelions in front of the fence around the chicken cop, and an old bloodhound sat slumped on the front porch, it's sagging face drooping over the steps. The horse looked up as the truck pulled in, but the dog gave no acknowledgment of the two guests. Lily couldn't say how excited she was of meeting this unknown relative.

After grabbing their luggage, they walked up to the broken screen door, Pop shoved it aside, and knocked a couple of times on the front door. There wasn't a response. Pop tried knocking again, louder this time, muttering something about "Probably takin' a nap." Meanwhile, Lily scanned the front porch setting. The dog glanced lazily up at her, finally deciding to see who was making noise trying to get his master's attention. There wasn't any sign of telephone wires, or a satellite. No phone calls. No television. No connection with the outside world. She pulled out her cell phone, and turned it on. No signal. If someone was going to kill them, no one would even know they were dead.

Before the morbid train of thought continued, the door opened abruptly, and a burly man wearing clothes that must been a few days overdue for washing appeared in the door frame. He was about Pop's height, though he definitely seemed to be younger than Pop by at least a decade. He had a growing beard, and wore a pair of glasses close to his eyes. Judging by the dark circles under his eyes and the displeased scowl he was giving them, Lily knew that he wasn't expecting or happy to see them.

Pop spoke first. "Hey, Jack."

"Who are you and what do you want? I'm busy," said his half-brother gruffly.

"Jack, it's me, your brother."

"Dad married a third time and said didn't anything? That's not a surprise."

"No, I'm your older brother."

"Never seen you before in my life."

"You don't remember me, 'Popper?' We used to play basketball in school together."

"If that's true, whose son are you?" he asked scrutinizing him.

"Mary Ellen's, dad's first wife," Pop replied.

Great-uncle Jack then seemed to stare off, looking at Lily and her grand-father, but not seeing them. He was reliving those days of basketball.

"Popper!" he cried squeezing his sibling into a hug with his bare arms. The two of them laughed as Jack tried to lift his older brother off the creaking floorboards. Lily watched on in silence, feeling almost as though she shouldn't be there, watching this reunion meant for them.

"Jack," said Pop when he was through splitting his sides. "This is my grand-daughter, Lily. You remember when I wrote to you about her a few years ago when she won the spellin' bee in her class?"

The middle-aged farmer bent to look at Lily through his glasses. "This is her? She seems older than in the picture you sent me."

"Well, she's twelve, Jack," replied Pop. "Kids grow."

"That they do," replied Jack. "Well, enough banter. Let's get you two settled in. I remember now that I had two rooms set aside for guests: the livin' room and chicken coop. Ha! Gotcha, didn't I? But seriously, the couch in the livin' room is a futon, but that's where Pop's stayin'. Li'l Lily here will be upstairs. She'll be stayin' in my daughter's old room. It's the first door at the stairs. Well, get settled in. I'm gonna burn something for dinner." With that he headed for the kitchen.

If the house left something to be desired on the outside, the inside was in desperate want. The place was full of clutter. Unwashed dishes towered on the coffee table, a couple of chairs in the dining room were overturned, ugly unidentifiable stains were ingrained in the carpeting and rugs, scarred and discolored wallpaper peeled off the walls, the scent of forgotten trash reeked throughout the kitchen, newspapers littered the hall floor, even a week old sandwich sat atop an open book collecting flies. _If that coop outside was the chicken pen, then this must be the pig's sty,_ thought Lily disgusted. She slowly inched her way uneasily upstairs, unsure of what she would find there.

While the boards creaked and groaned unhappily at her approach, she found the upstairs to otherwise be more welcoming than the downstairs. It appeared less lived in, with less clutter, but plenty of dust. She sneezed as she opened the door at the top of the landing.

The room seemed to be like a picture: a moment frozen in time. The bed had the sheets shoved back, as though Jack's daughter had just gotten up that very morning. The drawers of the clothes drawer were opened and emptied of clothes of any other items, and a chest at the end of the bed was wide open and void of toys or other belongings. The only thing that filled this vacant room other than the present furniture was a fine layer of dust, which left footprints where she walked. Lily couldn't help but feel as though she were stepping into an empty tomb. Another sneeze distracted her thoughts and she focused her attention on unpacking.

The room wasn't half bad. The wallpaper in the room was a light violet shade, with tiny pink roses trailing like raindrops down the walls. She looked inside the closet, and found dusty but unused sheets to replace the one on the bed. While pulling sheets on the bed, she knocked her hairbrush off the bed and unto the floor. When she bent down to fetch it, she glanced under the bed and found a dust-coated, cobweb-curtained book. She pulled it out, blew and wiped the dust off, and was puzzled to find that it had nothing on it's red cover to indicate it's title or subject. There was only the word "Scarlet" pasted on the front from letters cut out from magazines and newspapers.

"What is this?" Lily asked herself. But before she could even open the cover she heard her name being called. "Lily! I think you took one of my suitcases by mistake!" called Pop. "Can you bring it back down?"

"Coming!" she called. She tucked the mysterious book under her pillow. _What is that book about?_ There seemed to be no shortage of questions in this old mining town. And they didn't stop here.

_A/N A mysteriously discovered book... sounds like a cliché, but there you have it! I'm sorry that there wasn't much going on between Lily and Dipper in this chapter, but there will be more in the next, I promise! I just felt like we should know where Lily will be staying and who with, and then move on from there. To answer a question that was previously asked, no, this story won't be taking place in the series as my other story has been. This story is on the fly (and I love it that way :) ). QHzW FKDSWHU FRPLQJ VRRQ!_


	3. Chapter 3: A Little Talk About Death

Chapter 3: A Little Talk About Death

Lily would have liked to say that she woke up to the sound of a rooster's crow, but she was kept up all night by that noisy bird. She had also found spiders crawling around in her suitcase and along her bed after the old sheets had been disturbed. She couldn't kill them, so she had to either let them crawl in her hands and place them out my window, or else wait for them to crawl away. She tried desperately to sleep, but downstairs she could hear her grandfather and great-uncle laughing as they played a card game long into the night. The room made her sneeze, the bed creaked when she moved, and she was afraid that a spider would crawl down her throat. She was already missing home.

Lily had thought a couple of times about opening that book she found, but she was too exhausted and trying hard to get comfortable to want to. Even so, she kept wondering what the word "Scarlet" was supposed to mean. A color? A name? A person? A crayon? Who knew?

The next morning, she woke up reluctantly to the find the bloodhound slobbering on her bed sheets. After letting out a sound of disgust, the dog looked up, and waited until she got out of bed before he left to join his master downstairs. After last night's dinner of over-cooked hot-dogs and cold cereal, she was dreading what they would have for breakfast. But Pop said he didn't want to overburden Jack with cooking, and said that he would go take Lily and himself out for breakfast. Lily was so grateful she could have kissed him. It would also give Jack the time to give his home the cleanup it so embarrassingly needed. Even he was a just slightly self-conscience about how slovenly he lived.

Lily and Pop drove into town. There were a couple of restaurant's open, but Pop stopped at a pink diner. It was one that looked like it was actually built from a train freight car, and the waitress had a lazy eye and was called by the name of, not coincidentally, Lazy Susan.

"She'd like a couple of pancakes, and I'll have fried corned beef hash with a side of home fries and extra greasy bacon," Pop told the waitress. She repeated the order, then went to kitchen to get the order ready.

"Are you sure you should be eating all that greasy, fattening food?"Lily asked him.

"Why not? I got the money to spend," he replied. "As long as we're gonna hide out here, we might as well enjoy it."

"But... but aren't you worried? About your health, I mean."

"Hey now, my doc said that I can eat whatever I want, as much as I want. And I don't need you to be my wife. I'm the one lookin' out for you, remember?"

"But-but your illness. Your cancer! Your-"

"Lily, I know that I'm dyin'. I know I don't have long to live. But I'm not gonna live whatever time I have left afraid that what I do will cause me to die-"

"But I love you! I want you to live as long as you can. I-"

"People don't last forever, Lily. You have to understand that. Everyone eventually goes, but that doesn't mean it has to be all bad-"

"Yes it is! Everyone you love dies and you never get to see them again!"

"But what about heaven? You can't say that people can't hope for heaven?"

"But heaven can't be real, Pop. No one believes in that old fairytale anymore."

"Gran did." He grew silent and wouldn't look her in the eye.

Lily felt ashamed.

But then to break the growing tension, a familiar voice called from across the restaurant from the doorway.

"Hey, Old Popper! Didn't expect ya to be in town again so soon." It was Stanford Pines, with his grand-nephew and grand-niece in tow.

"Well, let's just say that my brother needs to practice cooking before we choke on his food," Pop replied.

"Ha ha! You've been gone so long I didn't think you'd remember about this place."

"How could I forget this place? It's where the meatball fight was." The two of them laughed in remembrance.

"Hi Lily," said Mabel cheerfully. She was wearing a sweater with a white lily sown on the front.

"Hi Mabel," replied Lily. "I like the sweater."

"I told you she would like it," Mabel directed her "I-told-you-so" attitude at her brother. Dipper hadn't said anything, hadn't looked her in the eye, afraid that he would lose his cool like yesterday. _Did she have to be here today? I'm not prepared for embarrassment yet._

"Hey Dipper," said Lily. Without meaning to, he looked directly at her. "Ooo- h-hi Lily. Um, wh-wh-why are you here?" He was a little surprised but also very relieved. Lily eyes weren't as bright or outrageously vibrant as yesterday. In fact, they seemed rather "toned down" in a way. Her voice was still soothing though, so he tried not feel nervous when he should feel calm once he heard it.

"Pop and I decided to eat out this morning," Lily replied. "You know, get an appreciation for the local taste."

"Boy, will you be in for it," said Mabel.

"Sooo, why are you here?" asked Dipper, trying to steady his voice so it wouldn't crack.

"Uh..." said Lily. _What was it Dad told me to say?_ "That is classified information. If I told you, I'd have to kill you."

"Ha ha ha ha! You kidder," laughed Mabel. Dipper didn't say anything, and before he could, Lily beat him to the punch. "Where are you from? Do actually live here?"

"Nah, we're only here for the summer," replied Mabel. "We're cheap labor for Grunkle Stan." She gestured to Stan, who seated himself in a booth, and called, "Hey, Mabel! Can you tell Lazy Susan what I want? I don't feel like wastin' my breath today!"

"Coming!" she hurried to do her pointless chore.

"Did she call him 'Grunkle' Stan?" Lily asked, confused.

"Oh yeah, we both do," affirmed Dipper, believing that now was the perfect time to show her how clever he was. "In fact, it was _my _idea. I mean, it's so much easier than saying 'Great-uncle Stan,' right? Great-uncle Stan. Grunkle Stan. Flows better."

"You know, you're right," Lily agreed.

"Really? You think so?" asked Dipper excitedly, but then he changed his attitude. "I mean- oh you know, it's just a simple idea really. _Anyone_ could have thought of that."

"Yeah, like _me_." His twin sister stood behind him looking none too happy. "You little scoundrel! Calling him Grunkle Stan was _my_ idea and you know it!"

"Wait! I can explain! It's just that-"

"You come back here!" she charged after him as he ran for shelter in the boys room.

Lily watched from the booth and laughed.

"Ahh, those two can go anywhere without getting into some sort of disagreement," remarked Stan, who had watched everything too. "It's a good life lesson to learn: when in danger, run for restroom. It's a guaranteed sanctuary." H sipped from a mug of coffee as he contemplated this latest philosophical idea.

Despite how the morning started, Lily felt happy for herself. As she ate her breakfast and watched the twin siblings make amends, she finally started to feel hopeful about her new home.


	4. Chapter 4: Gettting To Know You

Chapter 4: Getting To Know You Throughout breakfast, Dipper couldn't help but constantly have his gaze linger over Lily. Of course, he had to duck his gaze if she ever glanced back over his way. Despite his fears of being entranced in her eyes, he wanted to see them again. He wanted to hear her voice. He was afraid though that he would make her uncomfortable with his stare, especially since he knew he wasn't the most impressive of guys. She would think he was a creep or a weirdo. "Why do you keep lookin' across the room?" asked Grunkle Stan. "Oh-uh-uh, no reason!"replied Dipper, turning his attention back to his plate, and quickly shoveling food into his mouth. "I know why," said Mabel with a look of mischief on her braced smile. "It's nothing! Don't listen to a word she says," said Dipper, leaning closer to Mabel's ear and speaking in a whisper. "You promised not to tell!" "I won't," she assured. "You better not have your fingers crossed." "I don't." "Are you wearing the 'Scout's Honor' sweater?" "Dipper, you know me better than that. I wouldn't spoil your secret. I never told Wendy that you liked her." "All right," he conceded, concentrating back on his plate. The big difference between though between Wendy and Lily other than age was that Wendy was out of his league, and he knew it. Lily was totally in his league, but that didn't mean that she wouldn't reject him either. What chance did he have with her? Meanwhile, Lily lingered long over breakfast. She wasn't too eager to get back to Great-Uncle Jack's too soon. "Well, Lily, here's the schedule today," her grandfather explained. "I checked in Jack's fridge last night, what we had for dinner last night was all that was left of his provisions. Also, the bathroom was out of toilet paper. So I'm goin' down to the bank to make a transaction, and then I'm goin' to buy everything that we'll need for at least the next week. Is there anything in particular that you want? Lily?" But Lily wasn't listening. She was watching Dipper and his twin talk from across the room. She thought he was pretty cute, not in the strong-jawed, flowing hair, muscular build kind of way, but in his own way. She was sure that any other girl would have told her that he wasn't the sort of guy she should fall in love with, but she saw something in him that seemed … well, unique. She couldn't quite figure it out, but there was something about him that intrigue her. She was hoping that she would have another chance to talk with him. "Earth to Lily!" She jumped at the sound of Pop's exasperated patience. "Sorry, Pop! I guess I was, um, daydreaming. What did you say?" "Oh brother," he sighed. "What were you thinkin' about anyway?" "Nothing. Nothing important." "Were you thinkin' about your family?" "Uh... well, sometimes I do." That wasn't a lie. Ever since she left home, she was wondering how they were all doing. They were at as much risk as she was with the family secret, and she worried that all the bad things her parents described that could happen to her were happening to _them_. "Then we should do somethin' to make you happy," decided Pop. "This ain't the Lily I know and love. What would like to do?" Lily knew just what she'd like. "Could we stop back at the Mystery Shack?" "Hmm," Pop thought well for half a minute, then answered her with an even better proposition. "You know, I plan on gettin' more than just groceries for us to survive on for the duration of our stay, so we would be out all day long. How 'bout this? I'll go out shoppin,' while you stay at the Shack all day. That doesn't sound too long?" "Not all! Thanks, Pop!" Lily cried hugging him. "Thank you thank you thank you!" "Well, I need to go and talk with Stan first and see what he says." Pop got and walked over to Stan's booth. He asked him the favor that he could do his old friend. "Well, I don't know, Popper," Stan replied uncertainly. "I mean, these two pipsqueaks are enough trouble." He gestured at his grand-niece and -nephew. Popper simply pulled out a wad of bills, and held it out to Stan. "A pleasure doin' business with ya," said Stan, grabbing the money. "Drive safely," said Pop, walking away from the booth. "I'll see ya later, Lily," he called to his grand-daughter, exiting the diner. Lily waved until he left, then jumped out of her booth and headed to the Pines family as they were getting up to leave themselves. "So your the little scamp who ran out yesterday," Stan said to her. "Well, any relative of a well-paying patron is a good friend of mine. Mabel, Dipper, make sure she gets her seat belt on straight in the car." He began walking out the front door. "Sooo, Lily," said Mabel. "Did you see anything you liked at the Mystery Shack yesterday?" _Your brother._ "Um, well, I saw you guys," she replied. "I mean, you seem like a really nice guys. And, um, I saw all that candy." "I set up those rows myself," she said proudly. "I wanted Waddles to help, but Stan told me he would just eat all the merchandise and that it was bad enough we had a goat who did that." "Who's Waddles?" asked Lily, as they boarded the car. "He's my pig," replied Mabel. "And my _soul mate._" "You have a pig? I've been begging my parents to our family a pig for years. They're as intelligent and fun as dogs." "You get in first, Dipper," said Mabel chivalrously. "Why don't you sit between us, Lily? Between me and my brother?" Lily seated herself down, buckled her seat belt, and Stan started the engine and headed back to the Shack. Dipper began to feel jittery and nervous. He was afraid that he would begin to sweat with his heart pounding so much. While Mabel asked Lily about what bands she listened to, what her favorite flavor of ice cream was, what she wanted to come back as in a second life, Dipper willed himself to keep his heart rate down, which within the few minutes didn't take long. He just listened to Lily's honey-sweet voice, and felt himself get taken away by it, like he was listening to the notes of beautiful, calming music. If all he had to do for the rest of his life was sit and listen to Lily talk, he would have no regrets. "So Dipper, what do you to do?" It took him a full three seconds for Dipper to realize the question Lily asked was directed at him. But his mind went blank. "Uh..." _Say something, dummy! Say something! She asked you a simple question! _"I... like... to... go... mystery solving?" "Really? What do you do?" He punched himself in the face to get his act together. "Oh, I just look for clues, take evidence, search for monsters, all that crazy weird stuff." "Did you just punch yourself in the face?" "Pretend I didn't." "Well, here we are," announced Stan. "Home Sweet Shack. Just don't break anything inside. It doesn't come cheap, you know." 


	5. Chapter 5: The New Girl

Chapter 5: The New Girl

Lily had only been in the gift shop yesterday, but now Mabel was giving her the grand tour of the museum. Lily had never seen quite a place that upped the anty like the Mystery Shack, with it's cheap, fake attractions and expensive merchandise. But Mabel and Dipper seemed to have reasons to like being here, so Lily listened to them explain how they worked there, who they met, what Wendy and Dipper did with the golf cart last week. Life was a barrel of laughs here.

Speaking of whom, Wendy was sitting behind the cash register, reading a magazine, doing her job.

"Hey, Wendy!" called Mabel. Wendy glanced up from her magazine, and said in recognition, "Hey, you're the girl from yesterday who ran out and didn't buy anything. I'm surprised Stan let you back in."

"Lily's grandfather paid him off," explained Dipper.

"Well, it's good to see you back," she said in total honesty. "With people on vacation over the summer, this town gets smaller and smaller everyday. You're not rushing back home too soon are you?"

Lily wasn't absolutely sure. She knew her parents wanted her in Gravity Falls to keep her safe, but they never elaborated on a set return home date. Which made her fear that maybe she wouldn't be coming home at all. Who knew how long she and Pop would be staying there?

"No, I'm not," Lily assured her.

"So, why are you staying here anyway?" asked Wendy. "People who find this town are usually just passing through. They don't come for the attractions."

"Well, my grandfather used to live here when he was younger, but we're spending some time with my Great-uncle Jack."

"No way!" exclaimed Mabel. "You have a grunkle too? We're have _so_ much in common, oh my gosh!"

"Just wait," whispered Dipper to Lily. "She'll be knitting a sweater about that next."

She laughed a little to herself. "So, what do you guys do around here when you're not working?" she asked them.

"Hey, dudes," said Soos as he entered the gift shop. "You guys working? I need you to check out this new invention I made for- hey, it's the new girl."

"Hey there," said Lily. "You're Soos, right?"

"You remember my name," he said. "Up top!" She had to jump to reach his hand.

"So what this new invention you made, Soos?" asked Dipper.

"Yeah," said Wendy. "You know we'll check it out whether if we're working or not."

While Soos explained and lead them all into the attic to show them the new back scratcher he made for Waddles, Lily lost her attention on him too quickly. She saw the way that Dipper got excited about what Soos built, how intellectual he sounded talking with him about the engineering and mechanics of it. Dipper tripped on a rug in the room, and his hat flew off. But Lily rescued it while he picked himself up. His messy brown hair made him look strangely adorable. She was almost disappointed when he flipped his hat back on.

"Thanks," he said, his words interrupting her thoughts.

"Oh, uh, n-no problem," she said, rubbing her arm awkwardly.

"Come on, let's see if this thing works," he said, heading to the machine. Mabel was hugging Waddles, ready to place him under the 'scratching rod,' as Soos called it. Lily obliged by pressing buttons, and watching with the same fascination that everyone else had as it lit up... and then splutter smoke and explode. No one got hurt, thankfully. And after a brief pause, everyone laughed. Dipper tried to be serious, but he eventually starting chuckling too.

Lily was so happy. Life here was going to be great in Gravity Falls. And the more she got to know Dipper and her other new friends, the happier she felt still.

Later, Mabel led Lily up to the bedroom she and Dipper shared.

"We've been sharing this room ever since we first came here," explained Mabel. "Me, Dipper, and Waddles." The little pig was chewing a stuffed animal.

"So, are you guys, like, twins or something?" asked Lily.

Mabel gasped. "How did you know?"

I glanced between the two of them. They had the same face, the same hair, were about the same height (also Mabel was now wearing a sweater that had an arrow on it pointing to Dipper with the caption "He's The Smart Twin.")

"Lucky guess," Lily replied. She saw a few photos spread out on Dipper's bed. "Is that a picture of a dinosaur wing?"

"You can tell what it is?" asked Dipper. "The photo's so fuzzy."

"Yeah, that monster tried to eat Waddles!" said Mabel, hugging her pig.

"You mean this was_ real_?" Lily asked.

"Yeah, we see stuff like this all the time," replied Dipper. The more time he spent with Lily, the less nervous he felt. It may have been her voice, or just simply having time spent with her, he couldn't tell which for sure.

"Where?" asked Lily.

"Just around," elaborated Mabel. "In the woods, in town, in the Mystery Shack."

_Just like what Pop told me,_ though Lily. _It sounds more drastic than he made it seem._ "How did you guys find out about all of this?" She looked through some of the other pictures lying strewn about. Monsters, people, odd creatures not yet imagined. There was no telling what sort of trouble she could run into in this place.

"Well, I found this journal in the woods behind the Shack," said Dipper, pulling out a book with a red cover and gold six-fingered hand with a number 3 on the front form inside his vest. "It explains all the weird phenomena and creatures in the area." He flipped open the book, paging through as he spoke. "The things mentioned in this book have saved our lives more than once."

"Wow," Lily said thoughtfully. "Maybe you guys could teach me some things from this book. I mean, if I'm going to live here, I think I should know what to do in case, like, a bear tries to eat me or something."

"Well, we could start off on page-" but Dipper was interrupted by Stan's bellowing.

"Hey kids! Lily's grandfather is here to take her home!"

"Maybe some other time, then," asked Lily, hopefully.

"Um, okay," replied Dipper.

"You take her downstairs, Dipper," said Mabel. "The two of you should go down. Together. Just you two."

Giving her odd looks, Dipper and Lily descended the stairs and went into the house part of the Mystery Shack to meet up with Pop and say good-bye. But someone wearing a black hoodie with a stitched heart peering at them from behind a pine tree.

"So the dweeb has a new friend now," he said to himself. "A little girlfriend." He smiled wickedly. _"Perfect."_


	6. Chapter 6: The Secret Message

Chapter 6: T_h_**e** Se_cr__**et**_ **M****e**_ss__ag__**e**_

"Did I leave you there too long?" Pop asked Lily once they were on their way back to Great-Uncle Jack's home.

"Not at all! I had a great time!" she replied. "You should have left there longer."

"I know, but I bought ice cream that'll melt if we don't get back soon enough," he told her.

They sat in silence for a while, the windows open and wind howling in their ears.

"Pop, I'm uh... I'm sorry about what I said. Back in the diner."

"It's okay," he sighed. "You're young and still learnin'. I won't begrudge you."

She still felt guilty about what she said. She wanted to believe that Gran-Gran was in heaven.

When they came back to Jack's house, they were greeted with a different sight. The outside had the same falling-to-pieces appearance, but the inside was clean and orderly. Trash removed. Rugs vacuumed. Floors mopped. Dishes washed. They walked in on a fully dressed Jack spraying the living room with air freshener. Lily had to give it to him, he wasn't half bad as she had thought.

She helped her relatives stock the fridge and cupboards with fresh food, and found a mouse, with it's tail trapped under a can. Removing the can and grabbing it carefully by the tail, she held it by it's tail and rushed it outside. She ran into the woods behind the house, and placed the little rodent on a log.

"Don't come back into the house," Lily warned the mouse, releasing her grip on it's tail and watching it scamper away. "My grandfather bought mousetraps!"

When asked by her grandfather why she was outside, and she simply told him that she was rescuing a mouse, Great-Uncle Jack laughed. "You sound like my daughter, always tryin' to save the itty bitty bugs and vermin. Maybe you wasted your money buyin' those traps, Popper. She ain't gonna let nothin' die in this house."

Lily was pleased to be having a true meal that night for dinner, but didn't blame her great-uncle for not being adequately prepared for her and Pop. She politely listened to her grandfather and him banter and laugh about the old times back in high school and college, the pranks they pulled, the new people they met. As plates were gathered for washing, she finally asked Jack a pressing question.

"Can I call you 'Grunkle Jack' instead of 'Great-Uncle Jack?'"

He gave her a confused look. "What?"

Lily explained Mabel and Dipper's reasoning with calling their great-uncle 'grunkle.'

"Who the heck are the Pines?" asked Jack.

"They're Stanford's grand-nephew and grand-niece," explained Pop.

"Stan? That old scheming cogger?" asked Jack. "Haven't talked with him in years. I haven't talked to a lot of people in years."

"But are you OK with the idea?" prodded Lily.

"Yeah, whatever," replied Jack.

"OK, cool." With that, she headed upstairs. There was another thing that had been pressing in her mind, ever since Dipper showed her the journal.

She opened the red cover of "Scarlet" and found yellowed pages. Nothing inside the book was handwritten or drawn. Everything had been cut-and-paste letters from newspapers and magazines. If this author was still around in Gravity Falls, there was no way of figuring it out through handwriting. She read the first page.

"dear d_ia_ry, **my **Name is _Scar_let. YOu are _my_ **new** best fri_end,_ **a**n_d_ **it's y**Our job _to _liste**N** to my _s_E_crets_ a**nd** tell _nob_U_dy. N_o **on****e** e_l_**se** nee**D**s to hEa**R** th_e_Se Tiny **AND **SM_all_ tho**ug**_ht_s. _M_y I**de**as are **M**y owN and belOng To no _one_ **else**. _A_ **M**ind like my OwN i_S_ noT likE **an**_y_ othe**R**., and _I_ **C**_**AN**_ _T_Hink _what_ ie l**ik****E****.** Please do_n't_ **th**I**nk** Tha_t_ **im **a _lo_Fty and un**E**mpathic pe_R_soN be**cau**_**se**_ M**y** wrIting i_S_ So bad a**n**d n**o oth**E**r** nameS **or** _fri_End**S** are _M_Entioned. I j_ust_ want **a **_B_ea_U_T**I**ful bO_ok_ to **kee**_p_ my ow**N** **per**s_on_aliT**y** In an_d_ **not** need to _W_orry If m**y **_idea__S_ ma**tter** to ot**H**e_r_s besIdes **me. **Why **let** A S_in__**gl**__e_ ba**D** opIni**on, **Fi_ck_**le** and F**au**lty, b**E** a REas_oN __**T**__o ch_an**ge** my g_oo_d oPini**ons**_?_ **E**ve_R_y one'**S** tOld me _to_ _N_o**t **take **oth**_h_ers **I**d_eas_, Weird **a****nd** ev_I_**l or** _S_ad**,** to Hear**t,** _bu_t I **Wi**sh th**A**t thi**S** wou_ld_ stop. **a** _girl_ as BO_ld_ _and_ **R**ash as me **c**_a__**N**_be A wo**rse** a**N**at_ag_O_n__**is**_T t_H__an_ **th**Ey a**R**e. but **PE**ople _like_ u _an_d m**e** _R__eal_**ly** do_**n'**_t nee**d** _S_**O**_meo__N__e_ who_ I_s **li**k_e_ tha_t._ W**ho** **nee**_d_s _th_at?not **I.** So **we sH**ou_ld_ be** fr**I**en**ds. W**hy** not? **A**ny _per_Son **wou**_u_ld _**w**_**a****N**_**T**_ **a** _B_Oo_k_ t_o w__R_it**e** in **A**nd _**have **_T_h_ei**r** ow_n_ ide_**A**_s.i **L**ike havin_g_ a** goo**d L_itt__**le**_ fri**en**_**d**_ like _yo_u.i **wan**t _tel_l **u **all _abo__**ut**_ myse**l**f."

Lily had to reread the sentences a couple of times because their odd assortment was hard to follow at first. In some areas, some of the "I's" and other letters weren't capitalized, and the letters that were capitalized were in the middle of the words. They were a little distracting.

\ _This just seems like any other average, boring diary entry,_ thought Lily._ Just like any other girl would write. But she set up all these letters so weird. It's funny. if I take the first two letters that are capital, they spell "no."And how come that "U" is in nobody? This person doesn't seem to be a bad speller. But if I take that letter and the other few capital letters they spell "under." Wait. Is there some hidden message here?_

With this new epiphany, she grabbed another sheet of paper, and began to copy down all the letters that were capitalized and tried to find a message in them. A secret message was just strung along through the sentences, like a thread through a blanket. Lily separated and arranged the letters into proper words, and found these words hidden inside:

**"NO ONE UNDERSTANDS ME****. I'M NOT A MONSTER. I CAN'T HELP IT. FERN MISSES ME, BUT I DON'T. I WISH I WAS A DIFFERENT PERSON. I WISH I WAS A BORN ANOTHER PERSON. I WISH I WASN'T BORN AT ALL."**

Lily's mind was practically spewing with questions. _Who _is_ this person? Why did she write this? Why is she called a monster? What can't she help? Who is Fern? What was so bad about her? Why is she so sad?_

"Hey Lily, Grunkle Jack wants to show you how to work the emergency generator in case the power goes off!"

"Only Lily can call me that, you old cogger!"

"Oh, stop complainin', you old bat!"

Lily slammed the hidden message in the book closed, and hurried to attend to her relatives calls. The questions never left her, but followed her downstairs, and then eventually into her dreams. _Who is Scarlet?_


	7. Chapter 7: Wake Up Call

Chapter 7: Wake Up Call

Lily's dream was rather surreal.

She saw herself walking from her bedroom in Jack's house. It seemed to be morning. She felt alone in the house.

"Hello?" she called. "Pop? Grunkle Jack? _Great-uncle_ Jack?" She went to the landing and listened for their voices. There seemed to be whisper of sound that floated in the house, but Lily couldn't place it exactly.

She walked downstairs, and as she did, the stairwell morphed from Jack's home to her own home. She headed into the living room, and found her parents and siblings sitting together and watching a movie. One of her favorites too.

"Hey guys! I'm home!" she called. They didn't hear her.

"Mom, I'm here! It's Lily! Come on, Dad, look at me!" Still no response.

"Why are you ignoring me?"

Her mother then said something to her father, but Lily didn't catch it. Her father whispered back, and her mother burst into tears. Lily's siblings just gazed at the TV, no one smiling, no one laughing. Her sister sniffled slightly, and got up and went to the bathroom. She didn't come back out, and Lily thought she heard sobs coming from under the door.

"What's wrong?" Lily asked her mother. She waved a hand in front of her face, but her mother didn't see it. She tapped her father's shoulder. No response.

Lily then noticed another woman standing beside her. She was slim, tall and had curly black hair that fell to her knees. Her face was serene, her eyes tranquil as sweet as pools of honey. She wore something like a white toga, which fell about her like an icy crystal waterfall. It was held on her shoulder by a golden pin that was folded into the shape of a tiger lily.

Lily was startled. Who was this stranger?

"Don't be afraid, Lily," said the woman. "I am here to help guide you through your destiny." Her lips were like a tiny rosebud which bloomed with every word she spoke.

The rest of the room seemed to melt and dissipate as the two of them spoke to each other.

"What destiny?" asked Lily. "And how do you know my name?"

The woman gave a small laugh. "I know all about you. I cannot tell you everything at the moment, because you must discover who you are and what you must do on your own."

Despite how cryptic she sounded, Lily couldn't help but feel safe around the woman. Her ethereal beauty put her at ease. Lily still wanted answers though.

"Who are you?"

"I am Resplendence." Her name was as beautiful as she was. "I have shown you this in your dream so that you will become familiar with it. But you will need to find and discover many things as you and your friends explore Gravity Falls together. They will help you understand the danger that your parents are trying to protect you from."

"But they never told me what that was," replied Lily. "Who's out to get me? Why did I have to leave home?"

"You will soon see. For now, just know that no matter what happens, that all will be well." Lily felt something drip on her arm, and she saw a leak in the ceiling. "_All will be well._"

Lily woke up. Her arm was wet, and she looked over the side of her bed and saw Jack's bloodhound drooling on her arm.

"Ewwww!" she almost screamed. The dog gave her a slobbery kiss on her face. "I love you too, Blooper," she remarked sarcastically. The old hound slowly wagged his tail at the sound of his name.

As she got dressed, Lily decided not to regard her dream so much. It was just a dream after all. She had a dream once that a fish told her she would have to save the Milky Way from alien candy bars that threatened to pelt the planets with starfish. It was just a nonsense dream. Right?


	8. Chapter 8: Dipper's Nightmare

Chapter 8: Dipper's Nightmare

Dipper's dream started out well, at first.

He was walking outside of the4 Mystery Shack, and into a sunlit day. He saw his best friend and the love of his life: Wendy. She was always in his dreams.

Dipper ranup to her, but then she changed into Lily. He paused, and stared.

There was her beautiful brown hair, waving gently around her face, her liquid lovely eyes, her peaceful smile.

Dipper stood uncertainly, not yet daring to fully finalize his emotions and thoughts. Was he finally over Wendy? Was he falling for Lily?

Lily held her arms open for a hug, a halo a sunlight beaming around her. Dipper made his decision, and ran into her arms.

But before he could embrace her, he heard a heart-breaking scream. On that jolted him to the ground, as Lily was swallowed into a black hole that opened in the sky.

"Save me!"she cried. She was holding unto the branch of a tree, trying desperately not to get vacuum sucked into a swirling dark vortex.

"Lily!" Dipper cried. He hurriedly climbed up the tree, reaching for her flailing arms.

"Take my hand, Lily!" he called. Clinging tightly to the branch, he reached as far as he could for her outstretched fingers. But it was too little, too late.

"Diiipeeeeeeer!" screamed Lily as she became lost in the darkness. Dipper slipped and fell from the branch, falling defeated to the hard ground. Cold, haughty laughter echoed throughout the air.

"Ah!" Dipper woke up in a cold sweat, his bedsheets tangled around him, and his bed next him. He had fallen off of it in his sleep.

Waddles snorted next to him, chewing on his pillow. Dipper sighed, "I gotta stop reading from the journal before going to bed," he muttered to himself. He heard the laughter again, and turned around to find his sister, guffawing at him as he lay confused on the floor.

"You should've heard yourself!" she gasped between belly laughs. "'Take my hand, Lily! I'll save you!'" She laughed so much she snorted like her pig.

"How come you keep laughing at me about Lily?" asked Dipper. "She's someone I actually have a chance with. Besides, I never laugh at you and your crushes."

"That's because you're funnier than me," she replied. "I can't laugh at myself. Duh!"

Dipper scowled, and got up to put his bed back in order.

"Look, I'm sorry," said his sister, attempting to apologize. "Hey! I know what will make you feel better. You know how Lily's grandfather said that she and him are going into town today to buy some new electric appliances?"

"Yeah," acknowledged Dipper. "So?"

"Well, turns out by some _crazy_ coincidence, we need a new toaster." Waddles was under her bed, chewing on the unplugged wire of the stolen toaster.

"So, Grunkle Stan has to buy a new one," she continued.

"... and we could go with him and meet up again with Lily. Mabel, that's brilliant!"

"When am I not? I'm a matchmaker genius."

"Come on, let's tell Grunkle Stan."

"HEY!" hollered Stan from downstairs. "Where's the toaster?! Is that goat eating it _again_?"

"I think he knows," remarked Mabel. Waddles crawled out from under the bed, and burped out a slice of toast.

"Continental breakfast, anyone?" asked Mabel.

_That dream was just a pointless fear,_ Dipper tried to assure himself. _Nothing bad's gonna happen to Lily._ Right?


	9. Chapter 9: Things Unsaid

_A/N Sorry everyone for getting this chapter late! My computer was broken, and school's been holding me up. But I'm happy to be back, and glad to finally get this story updated. Have fun reading!_

Chapter 9: Things Unsaid

Pop didn't want to do it, but Lily insisted that they bring Blooper with them into town.

"That mutt's too old to exercise," argued Pop.

"So are you," replied Lily in a rational tone.

"I'm buying my half-brother a TV with color, somethin' useful – and somethin' he's never seen. What's Blooper gonna do for us? Chase a car?"

"He could guard the truck."

"Come on, Lily. Be reasonable-"

"Please, Pop? If Grunkle Jack hasn't been into town for years, then neither has Blooper. He needs to see the world again. He misses it. He told me."

"Are you sure you didn't tell _yourself_ that you wanted to bring that droopy old hound with us?"

"He _did_ tell me! You know I wouldn't lie."

"Well..."

After some arguing and pleading, Pop finally conceded to bringing Blooper into the bed of his truck, provided that Lily watch him to make sure he didn't run away or die from excitement, or both.

"I wouldn't be surprised if the bumps in the road knock what's left of his teeth out of that old hound's mouth," Pop muttered as they reversed down the dirt driveway. "I'm still surprised that Jack let you bring him with us."

"He doesn't know," smiled Lily.

Lily did as she was told, and kept Blooper's leash tied to the bike rack while her grandfather went inside the appliance store, she stayed outside to guard the bloodhound. She wouldn't be bored though. That was what her sketchbook was for.

Lily had a hand for drawing. Not that she bragged about it; she wasn't that type of girl. She couldn't say though that all the compliments from her friends were undeserved. She worked hard at the characters and people she drew (most of them from her favorite show, _Kim Possible_). But now she was working on a sketch of Blooper.

He simply lay flat by the bike rack, watching the minimal traffic wheel by. But Lily knew that he didn't care about how uneventful the summer mid-morning appeared. He was blind.

While finishing off the point of his nose, a happy voice yelled "Good morning!" behind her. Lily yelped and threw her sketchbook up in surprise, and it landed in Dipper's arms. The voice belonged to Mabel.

"Hi, Lily," waved Mabel. "Fancy meeting you here. Without meaning to. In any way."

Behind her stood a grouchy Stan Pines.

"Well, I'm headin' in to get a new toaster," he said, muttering, "Darn goat. You two comin' or what?"

"I'll come, Grunkle Stan," called Mabel. "But Dipper's staying out here. With Lily. By himself. Just the two of them."

Stan gave her an odd look, and walked inside. She followed, winking at her brother.

Dipper was too occupied looking between the sketch Lily drew and Blooper dozing in the sun.

"You drew this?" he asked her.

"Yeah," she replied, feeling self-conscience. _What would he think?_

"Th-that's amazing!" he exclaimed, handing back her sketchbook.

"Really? You think so?"

"Of course! I mean, uh, I-I mean I've... never seen anything drawn that well before. The detail's great. What else have you drawn?"

"Oh, lots of stuff." Lily flipped through some pages. There were few Kim Possible character sketches, a couple of her friends, an attempt at a self-portrait, and few other things from her old home life. Lily told Dipper the story behind each one; a drawing of Kim in action, another of her friend doing something silly in class. Dipper never realized what depth of character Lily had until then, and as he sat there, looking at the way she smiled as she laughed, he noticed something about her face. More specifically, her eyes.

"Are you wearing contacts?" he asked her.

Lily paused, and realized he asked a question. "Oh, yeah. I got one of those eye problems, stigmathism and far-sighted stuff, you know?"

"You mean 'astigmatism?'"

"Yeah, that! You're so smart," she laughed awkwardly, nudging him with her elbow. _Stop acting so nervous! He might get suspicious!_

Dipper looked at her eyes. They weren't so dazzingly blue after the first day he met her. He would have just brushed off that moment as a freaky imaginative idea his love-sick mind came up with. But now there seemed to be an explanation for why her eyes seemed... dimmed.

"But you weren't wearing them the first time you came to the Shack, were you?" he asked.

_Change the subject! Think of something – fast!_ "Say, you brought your book!" She noticed a corner of the cover sticking out from inside a pocket in his vest.

"Oh yeah, the journal." He removed it, and opened the first few pages for Lily to read. "This book explains all these crazy supernatural secrets like you wouldn't believe." And so they began where they had left off yesterday, reading pages from the journal, and learning more about the town.

Before the noon hour was full, Mabel and Stan walked out with a new toaster, Stan chatting with Pop about their old lives, while Pop lugged an enormous new TV set.

"Hey guys!" said Mabel, beaming a braced smile. "So, how are things going?" She hugged the two of them around their shoulders.

Dipper and Lily both gave awkward "Uh, OK," and "Everything's cool" answers.

"I hoped you two would get along real well." Mable winked at her brother multiply times.

"You were spying at us from the window, weren't you?" her brother dead panned.

"Maybe just a little," she smiled.

"Hey, Lily," called Pop, shoving the TV set into the bed of the truck. "Load Blooper in here. I've gotta get back home and teach Jack how to use a remote."

"Oh, you guys haven't met Blooper yet," realized Lily. She ran over, and patted the old dog's side to wake him up. "Guys, meet Blooper, Jack's old hound."

"Awww! He's _so_ adorable! Just looked at his eyes!" Mabel took Blooper's droopy face in her hands, and marveled at his bloodshot eyes.

"He's blind," Lily said sadly. "Grunkle Jack says he lost his sight a couple of years ago, and since then, he hasn't been away from the house."

"That's too bad," replied Dipper sympathetically.

"Hey! Maybe we can train another dog to be Blooper's seeing-eye dog," suggested Mabel.

"I don't think it would work too well," said Dipper.

"What about a seeing-eye cat?"

"That's even worse!"

"A seeing-eye goldfish?"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about Blooper getting around," said Lily. "That's what Jill's for."

"Who's Jill?" asked Dipper. "Jack's sister?"

"No, she's a miniature horse that Grunkle Jack has owned for a few years now."

"Say, you called him 'Grunkle Jack,'" realized Mabel. "I knew I would have positive affect on you!" She pumped her fists in triumph.

"Lily, let's get goin'!"

"Sorry, Pop! I'm coming!" She rushed to grabbed her sketchbook, but so had Dipper. Their heads hit with a "Clonk!" and the sketchbook was flipped open, and loose pages blew into the street. The twins and Lily ran about trying to retrieve them all.

Lily abandoned that task to focus back and helping Blooper into the truck. She untied his leash and lead him on.

Meanwhile, Mabel and Dipper managed to sort the pages back in order, and handed the sketchbook back to Lily. But she was in the bed of the truck, with Blooper's head drooling in her lap.

"Hey Lily, aren't you ridin' shotgun?" asked Pop.

"Blooper wants me to sit with him," explained Lily.

"What? Come on now."

"I'm serious. He doesn't feel comfortable being here alone with this huge TV. He's afraid that it'll slide when he can't see it and hit him."

"Well, Blooper's gonna have to live it. It's too dangerous for you to ride back here without a seat belt."

"I _can't_ tell him that. _Not now_."

Pop glanced behind at the Pines family, and sighed. "I'll tie it down with cables then. I probably should have done that anyway. But please get in the front seat, Lily. You can't do everything that dog wants."

"I know," Lily resigned.

"Next time, leave the mutt behind."

"Don't call him that! He'll hear you."

With Stan leading the way back to his car, Mabel and Dipper turned and followed him. Even though the conversation sounded like something that Mabel (or any other girl) would say, Dipper couldn't help but feel that there was something more to it. Something that Lily didn't want to say.

_There's something about her eyes_, Dipper thought. _Or I'm just getting paranoid. I mean, come on. What could a nice girl like Lily possibly be hiding?_

What neither Dipper nor Lily noticed as they left to their separate homes was the lone piece of paper, flying in the tailwind of the vehicles. It blew confusedly until it landed down a narrow alley between the appliance store and another business. A figure with fingerless gloves picked up the forgotten paper, and gazed at the picture drawn in. It was Lily's self-portrait.

He squeezed it tightly in his hands, and tore it down the middle. _You're mine, kid._ He released the torn picture, and the wind tossed the destroyed child's picture into oblivion down the streets of town.

_ You're as good as mine._


	10. Chapter 10: Great-aunt Jill

Chapter 10: Great-aunt Jill

"Pop, I'm getting a little worried."

"Blooper will be fine back there, Lily."

"It's not that. Dipper figured out that I was wearing contacts, and I almost blew it."

"You weren't actin' nervous, were you?"

"That's exactly what I was doing. I couldn't help it, I panicked! I forgot my explanations, and I've had them memorized for years!"

"It's all right. If he asks you again, just stay calm and remember: you're just a gal from out of town stayin' with your relatives, you have astigmatism and are far-sighted, you want to become a veterinarian when you grow up, and you've had vocal trainin' which is why you have an abnormally melodious voice."

"And I went to arts school which is why I'm great with a sketchpad and pencil."

"See? You'll do fine. Just don't show how nervous you are, and no one would know the difference."

_No one except Dipper._ Lily wasn't just scared to death that she would come off as suspicious, but that Dipper would find out. He had a journal that practically revealed everything that was even remotely unusual about the town, maybe even double rainbows or four leaf clovers. If she had to worry about anyone finding out her secret, it had to be especially be Dipper.

_I can't hang out with him anymore, _her mind decided.

_ But I like him, and that would be rude, _responded her heart._ I can't be that way. _

_ Do you want to keep your secret safe or not? _argued her mind.

_ Maybe he won't ask anymore about that, _replied her heart. 

_ What if he does?_

_ I can't stop being around him? That might be suspicious too._

_ But you can't let him find out!_

_ What do I do?! _

Neither one had an answer.

YB ZXOBCRI IFIV

Later that evening, Lily's nerves had settled, but she was still bothered about it. Not even her vegetarian burger could hold her attention completely. Her older relatives ate beef burgers, but she didn't fault them for that. They didn't have the way with animals that she had. They weren't able to understand how the poor creatures felt. For Lily, it was both a blessing and a curse.

"... and then Mrs. Callow told me that I should never have been a plumber, because I was a dumber! Can you believe that? The woman taught grammar, and she's the one callin' _me_ an idiot!"

"That old woman's been that ornery since middle school, Jack. Even when she was trying to fall over you for attention, she would always try to get a bit and a bridle in your mouth."

"That's probably why her husband died so soon. She wore him out ordering him around."

"As if the sound of her shrill voice didn't make him die of deafness."

They two half-brothers guffawed at their humor. Lily remained silent, watching them. She didn't know what to say at this time, so she just waited until they wanted to ask her something.

With tears in his eyes, Pop heaved a few breaths before he could finally talk. "Well... heh heh ... it's a good thing you found Jill, before that coot set her eyes back on you."

"Oh, Jill found _me_, Popper," replied his brother. "I was never any good at seeking my fortune. I could barely find the nose on my face."

"You're right? It was her idea to marry you after all. You wouldn't have had the sense to ask her yourself."

"Oh, you gnat!" Jack shoved his half-brother playfully.

Lily's attention had snapped at the turn the conversation had taken. "You married _a horse_!?

Her grandfather and great-uncle looked at her, then at each other, and guffawed even more than before. Pop fell out his chair with laughter.

"What's so funny about that?" asked Lily confused.

Jack had to wait a full minute before he caught his breath enough to talk to her. "Sorry Lily, I never told ya. The horse was named after my wife, Jill."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Popper added. "Didn't yer daughter want to name that horse after her mother?"

"Yep. I guess she thought it would be an honor," replied Jack.

"So you've had that horse for a while," said Lily.

"A long while."

"What was your daughter like?" asked Lily with sudden interest. "What was her name?"

"You know, I love that new TV you helped me install, Popper," diverted Jack. "You were right: I _was_ missing something."

"What about your wife? What was she like?"

"Yeah, you've been stuck in the Dark Ages long enough. It was about time you got introduced to the twenty-first century."

"Grunkle Jack, didn't you hear me?"

"What show should we watch tonight? The Honeymooners?"

"The Honeymooners? That show's been out for decades, you old prune."

Lily felt hurt. Just when she was sure she had a niche in the old men's conversation, they were leaving her out. Ignoring her. Treating her like a little kid. To be seen but not heard. She soundlessly excused herself, and went upstairs to her bedroom.

GXZH FP KLQ TEXQ EB PBBJP

The pages in the diary flew as Lily flipped through more of Scarlet's secrets. Each one was dark and mysterious, and Lily found more questions rather than answers as she translated the hidden messages.

**"EVERYONE'S AFRAID OF ME. MY OWN FAMILY. THEY HATE ME. I HATE THEM MORE. ESPECIALLY FERN. THE PERFECT ONE. SHE DOESNT HATE ME WHICH MAKES ME HATE HER MORE. THE ONLY THING I LIKE IS HATE."**

** "IM RUNNING AWAY. I HAVE TO. I CANT LIVE HERE ANYMORE AND I KNOW IM NOT SAFE HERE ANYMORE. FERN AND I HAVE TO LIVE ON SEPARATE SIDES OF THE HOUSE. MOM AND DAD HATE ME I KNOW. THEYRE SCARED OF ME. THE FEELINGS MUTUAL."**

** "IVE BEEN HIDING FOR TWO DAYS. THE MAGAZINES I STOLE WONT LAST. I USE THEM ONLY TO KEEP MY THOUGHTS SAFE. NO ONE THINKS THAT IM SMART ENOUGH TO HIDE MY THOUGHTS AND I DONT TRUST ANYONE. ITS THE ONLY TRUTH ABOUT MY LIFE. TRUST NO ONE."**

Lily couldn't begin to figure out who Scarlet was and why she seemed so bitter and hateful about her life. But she knew someone who did. Deciding that this would not only score her points with Dipper but also help to divert his attention away from her and possible secrets, she resolved to meet him again the next day.


	11. Chapter 11: The Calm After The Storm

Chapter 11: The Storm After the Calm

Lily had to wait a few days before she got to see any of the Pines family again. The reason was because a heavy rainstorm had blown in overnight, and a tree knocked into the power lines, and another tree wrecked the back up generator. There wasn't too much damage, but it meant that Pop had to stay focused on repairing them both with Jack, and she had to wait until the power was restored and they wouldn't have to use Pop's truck as a backup power source.

And despite all their time together, Jack would talk about anything to Lily except his own family. She tried time and again to bring up the subject, but he wouldn't cooperate. She was afraid that she would make him too angry with her, and so stopped pressing him for answers.

By that time, Lily had run out of contacts. Aside from tools and parts to finish repairing the generator, Lily knew she and Pop were gonna have to make a run for an eye doctor with her prescription to replenish her supply. Until then, she would have to make do with her own backup: her red rimmed glasses.

"Are you sure they won't fall off?" Pop asked her the umpteenth time as they drove along the muddy streets of downtown Gravity Falls.

"I'm positive," Lily assured him, shuffling a backpack by her feet. "I'm wearing the band around the back of my head, so they won't slip off if I trip or something."

"Even so, I want you to stay with me at all times today. I don't want you wonderin' off somewhere, talkin' to strangers, or doin' anything that'll get you trouble."

"Then why don't you just drop me off at the Mystery Shack again? I won't cause any trouble there."

"Weren't you afraid that Dipper was on to you?"

"He won't suspect a thing. I'll just do what you told me, stay relaxed, and he won't know the difference."

Pop considered it. "Fine. But you aren't leaving the Shack, got it?"

"Why, Pop, what's wrong?"

"It's just... I've been thinkin'... the longer I live here, the more I remember, and the more I remember about this town, the more I realize this place has a ... spooky element to it. There was always a reason why I was scared of the dark."

"You mean those things you said that hide out here could be..."

"I don't remember what to look out for exactly. I'm not trying to scare you, Lily, I just want you to be aware that there _may_ be something dangerous around these parts. But don't leave the Shack, and if you need to, don't leave on your own. Got it? Don't wander into the forest, or get lost anywhere out here. The Shack is secluded in a forest known for wild animals and who-knows-what-else."

_Dipper and Mabel might know,_ thought Lily. She had to talk with them again.

"Just be careful out there, Lily."

"I will, Pop."

"Maybe comin' out here wasn't the best idea," muttered Pop to himself.

Lily was hoping with all her heart that he was wrong.

MLM FP OFDEQ

Dipper, Mabel, Wendy, and Soos were on cleaning patrol. Still. After the storm had been over four days ago. The power lines had been wrecked to the point of no repair, a tree limb had collapsed the ceiling over the twins' bedroom, and entire compound was littered with branches and pine needles. The only one who was enjoying himself was Waddles, swimming in a puddle of dirt.

They were almost finished sweeping the broken branches out of the parking lot, when Popper's truck pulled up, and he and Lily disembarked. Lily waved hi to everyone, and happy greetings were exchanged while Popper went inside to negotiate a price with Stan over babysitting his granddaughter.

"Say, nice glasses," Wendy mentioned to Lily.

"Really? You think so?" she asked.

"Yeah, _you_ fit in them nicely," said Mabel. "And they're so red."

"They make you look smart," said Dipper, before turning a shade of red himself. Lily tried not to notice.

"Dudes," distracted Soos. "You wanna drive the golf cart and see if we can plow through that course I built around that enormous puddle without getting splashed?"

"Actually, Soos," said Lily. "I kinda wanted to talk with Mabel and Dipper."

"Better wear a raincoat," Wendy warned Soos, as they left to find the cart. Lily motioned for Mabel and Dipper to follow her inside the Shack. Before they got through the front door, Popper walked out, waving a good-bye to Lily and heading for the truck while Stan rolled a stack of bills between his hands inside the gift shop.

Lily then went inside, and lead the twins into the living room, where she removed her backpack, unzipped it, and pulled out Scarlet's diary, and the translations of her story.

QEBPB PBZOBQP XOB AXKDBOLRP

"What do you guys think?" asked Lily as the twins scanned the pages of the diary and the translations.

"I can't believe you found an actual secret in Gravity Falls," said Dipper, clearly amazed. He kept glancing between the diary and his journal, flipping pages, and trying to find anything in common between the two. "We haven't seen anything this huge since the journal." He rubbed in his chin in thought as he poured over the pages. Lily knew her idea worked perfectly, and would still as long as his curious focus on a mystery. Other than her.

"This Scarlet gal sure has some _interesting_ handwriting," mentioned Mabel. She pulled up a page that Lily had written a translation on just yesterday.

The message said: **I AM SOMETHING TO BE FEARED. NO ONE DARES TO LOOK ME IN THE EYE. I HAUNT EVERYONES NIGHTMARES. I AM MONSTROUS!**

"She sounds nice," remarked Mabel.

"I can't find anything in the journal that mentions anything about a Scarlet or about anything that she copied and pasted in that diary," said Dipper. "So she's not a discovered and documented person outside of her diary. But it doesn't tell us much about her."

"Do we need more clues?" Lily asked him. "I mean, we already do know_ some_ things about her. Like how she hates her family, is trying to escape her life, and seems to have an inferiority complex. What else can we learn about her?"

"It might help if we knew something else about this diary's origins," decided Dipper. "Lily, where did you find this book?"

"Under the bed in the room I'm staying in right now."

"That room might be the place that Scarlet slept in. Don't you know if she's a relative?"

"Well, I tried asking Grunkle Jack for the last few days about his family, like his wife and daughter, but he doesn't tell me anything! He clams right up or changes the subject. He just doesn't want to talk about it."

"Hmm... that's awfully strange," said Mabel thoughtfully. "Have you thought about asking about his sister or mother?"

"It does seem weird that he doesn't want to talk about his family, and you have this book mentioning someone who's been having trouble with her family," remarked Dipper.

"Are you trying to say that Scarlet is Grunkle Jack's _daughter_?" asked Lily. "And that she and Grunkle Jack have had a falling out?"

"It's our best guess," he shrugged. "You didn't show him the diary, did you? Does he know about it?"

"No, because for some reason, I'm afraid that if I did show him, it would make him angry. If Scarlet is angry with Jack, and if he doesn't want to talk about it, maybe he would try to stop me from reading it. What if he took it away before I even finished the entire diary and never returned it? We'd never figure out what was up with Scarlet."

But someone interrupted their discussion.

"Hey kids! Lunch time!" called Stan from downstairs.

"Smells like corn dogs!" cried Mabel eagerly. She and Dipper raced downstairs, leaving Lily bounding to keep up. She hoped there was more than just corn dogs being served.

QEB IBPP VLR HKLT, QEB PXCBO VLR'II YB

"What do you mean you can't eat it?" asked Mabel.

"I'm a vegetarian," Lily replied. "It's against my good conscience to eat meat."

"What's up with your good conscience?" asked Stan. "Can't you eat what you want without it being bothered by it?"

"I'm not trying to offend you Stan, it's just-"

"Just try it," said Mabel, placing a corn dog on Lily's plate. "No one knows what these things are made of anyway."

Lily gazed sadly at her food, trying hard not to image which poor animals had to die for her meal.

"It's not that bad," assured Dipper. "But it's either this, or you go hungry."

Lily made up her mind. She took hold of the corn dog, and before she could regret anything, chomped a huge bite.

And another. And another. And another.

YXZLK FP IFCB!

"I never realized what I was missing out on!" exclaimed Lily when she and the twins were finished eating.

Dipper burped. "You haven't lived until you've had bacon."

"Yes you have!" cried Mabel, lunging to hold her pet pig. "Don't listen to him, Waddles!"

Lily chuckled, but her thoughts wandered back to Scarlet's diary. Could she really be one of her relatives? If so, what had happened between her and Grunkle Jack? Why was there so much anger and frustration in her words? And why did she seem so … sadistic?

Lily was almost afraid of what the answers might be.

A crash and a rattle jolted her thoughts and everyone jumped from the table.

"What was that?" asked Dipper.

"It came from outside," said Mabel, leaving Waddles and leading the way to the backdoor. They all rushed from the table, and opened the back door.

Aside from the storm damage, everything seemed normal. Except for the spilled trash can with dumped garbage, and the missing golf cart that Soos had previously returned after it's harrowing adventure through the homemade course. Oh, and the trail of broken trees and heavy footprints leading quickly into the forest.

Stan stared at the mess for a moment. "All in favor of returning the golf cart say 'I.'"

No one responded.

"All in favor of staying here to clean up the trash say 'I.'"

Against their better judgment, all three kids made a bee-line for the woods.

"Sheesh, let's not jump all at once," muttered Stan. He returned inside the Shack for a dustpan and broom.


	12. Chapter 12: Talking With The Fishies

Chapter 12: Talking With the Fishies

Lily knew that she was directly disobeying her grandfather's explicit orders not to leave the Shack for any reason whatsoever. Even without his instruction, she wouldn't venture in the shadowy pine forest anyway. She feared the monsters and otherworldly creatures that she saw in Dipper's Journal, and was not at all pleased to be pursuing one of the nightmarish beasts.

So why was she out here? Call it intuition, but she felt that somehow, in some way, her friends were gonna need her.

She and Dipper shot ahead, with Mabel trailing behind them. The trail they followed was marked with muddy footprints, and fallen and split trees laid as obstacles and hurdles to jump. They could feel the ground shake and shudder from the monster's footsteps, and hear trees somewhere ahead crack and hit the ground. Frightened animals scattered from the branches as the beast continued to destroy their homes.

While climbing over another fallen pine, Dipper flipped through the pages of the Journal, trying to identify whatever it was they were chasing.

"It's enormous … extremely strong … and fast … I've got nothing," said Dipper. "We have to get a look at this thing."

"How are we gonna do that?" asked Mabel.

"Hey guys," called Lily. "I think it stopped over the hill." The crashing of trees had ceased, as had the heavy footfalls. They heard strange growling sounds coming from behind a small hill, and the footprints led right over it.

The three tweens huddled behind the hill, Mabel and Lily hovering behind Dipper, trying to look into the Journal.

"What is it, Dipper?" asked Mabel. "Is it the gnomes? The Gobblewonker? Another Gideon robot?"

"This monster could be anything," replied Dipper, "so we should proceed to face whatever it is with the highest caution." He closed the book's covers, and pocketed it in his vest. "Guys, grab a big stick, and speak softly, 'cause we're gonna face the powerful, mighty – "

He leaped over the crest of the hill, followed by Lily and Mabel armed with broken branches, and they saw …

"… oversized fish with legs?" asked Mabel.

The fish was indeed oversized, but it didn't have true legs. It had fins that functioned like legs, making it stand and walk like a biped. It was yellow with orange spots, and was the size of an elephant. It held the golf cart in it's mouth, chewing it between it's thin but deadly teeth. It growled as it crunched the roof and popped the tires.

"What is that thing?" whimpered Lily. She was wishing now that she listened to Pop.

"I don't know," said Dipper, frantically turning pages. "I've never seen any – wait, here it is! 'The Gravity Falls Footfish is a very strong and adaptable creature that resides in the Gravity Falls Lake. It is capable of walking upright on two fins, and can live outside of water for as long as three days if there has been frequent rain or damp weather. With an adult height of sixty feet to a hundred and ten, on land, they are one of the tallest living creatures of the modern world.' "

Lily looked back at the fish creature playing with the golf cart. It only stood at about eleven feet."Then this one's just a baby," she realized.

"Aww, it's teething," said Mabel, as the fish tore off a tire, and swallowed it down it's gullet.

"We need to rescue the cart, and find a way to get this monster back where it belongs," said Dipper. "But we have to think of a clever way to distract it or lure it back there. Maybe we could go back to the Mystery Shack and find some sort of fishing lure, or maybe we can get Soos to act as bait, but then again we could …"

But as he spoke and pondered their options, Lily's wet branch slipped through her hands, and it rolled down the slope of the hill, and tapped the fish's tail. It fixed it's red eyes on them, dropped the golf cart, and roared.

"Guys, let's run!" screamed Mabel, and they took off, running back the way they came.

All except Lily. She simply stood and waited for the monster to approach her.

Dipper noticed this right away, and turned to go back and save her from certain danger. But he tripped over a thin fallen tree, and Mabel returned to rescue him. They both watched in stupefied horror as Lily stood in the direct path of the Footfish, who was stomping it's way right to her.

"Lily! _Run!_" screamed Dipper desperately.

But Lily did nothing until the fish monster paused and peered down at her, surprised perhaps that she wasn't fleeing, or perhaps sizing her up for a meal. It opened it's jaws wide, ready to devour her.

"Stop!" Lily shouted. Amazingly, it did.

"Who are you? Why are you here?"

The fish gurgled a thunderous reply. "ME FINN. ME LIVE LAKE. ME SEE WATER FALL FROM SKY. ME SWIM ON TWO FINS, GO LAND. LAND MORE DRY THAN LAKE."

"Why did you take the golf cart?" She pointed to the golf cart.

He looked at the golf cart. "ME SEE FAST MOLLUSK SWIM ON FOUR FINS FAST. ME THINK MOLLUSK FOOD. ME TRY EAT IT. NO GOOD."

"The 'fast mollusk' belongs to us. It's, uh, food for humans, and it's no good for you."

"ME SEE."

"Can you bring it back to me please?"

"OK. FINN NO LIKE FAST MOLLUSK." He picked the cart back up in his teeth, and brought the cart over the hill and dropped it by Lily's feet.

"You should go back to the lake," Lily advised. "There isn't food up here that you can eat."

"ME NO LIKE FOOD ON LAND. ME WANT GO HOME." He turned away and carved a new path in the forest to get back home to the lake.

"Well, pleasant meeting you, Finn. Have a safe trip back, don't eat anyone on your way there."

Smiling satisfied to herself, Lily turned back down the tree fallen trail to find her friends. It didn't take long. Mabel leaped from behind a mossy log, yelling "Lily, you scared the monster away with your funny growling noises! That was _awesome_!"

Dipper didn't exactly share her enthusiasm. "Wha-wha-what did – how did – what – how'd you _do_ that?!"

"Do what?" Lily asked innocently. _Please pretend you're not suspicious. Please pretend you're not suspicious. _

"You were like, _talking_ to that – that monster! You were making the same noises it made! How – how – "

"Isn't it obvious?" asked Mabel.

"It is?" asked Lily, her heart jumping into overdrive. _She can't know. She can't possibly know. _How_ does she know?_

"Well, duh. It's so obvious that Lily … is a fish whisperer. She must have read a page or something in your Journal about the language of fishes and figured out how to talk to fish. Either that or she grew up in an aquarium all her life."

"Uh … yeah, Mabel, you're _absolutely_ correct," agreed Lily. "My parents have both worked in an aquarium and a zoo my whole life, and I happened to pick up some tips on how to deal with temperamental fish." _Whew. That was a close save._

Dipper's face had a raised eyebrow that told Lily he was totally skeptical, but Mabel's braced smile said that she totally bought it. Lily could live with that. _One of two isn't bad, right?_

The three were about to trek back to the Mystery Shack with the heavily damaged golf cart, when a baying sound called their attention behind them up the tree laden path. Out of the pine needles burst blind old Blooper, snuffling about and baying as he found Lily. He leaped in her direction, and she made sure to catch him before he landed on a sharply splintered bough.

"Blooper! What are you doing out here, boy?" Lily was perplexed, until she saw her grandfather emerge through the trees not far after him. "Pop?"

"I heard that you guys lost your cart and went searchin' for it. I decided to try and find you and see if I could help." explained Pop. "Looks like I'm a little late, but let's try to get it back to the Shack."

Despite his illness, Pop was still the strongest of the four. With Blooper eagerly leading the way back, they trooped through the forest, dragging the injured cart over logs and mud.

GRQ'W IHHG WKH IRRWILVK

After finally getting the golf cart back home for repairs, Lily and Pop drove home. Lily had heard that when Pop arrived and heard that she had disappeared into the forest, he had rushed home, brought Blooper back to the Shack, and had him search for her.

"Did it take you long?" she asked him.

"Well, I assumed you would be followin' the 'pine wood road' to wherever the cart was, but in case you happened to veer off, I wanted to be able to find you effectively. I found you kids in like, two minutes."

"But we didn't hear Blooper for about five minutes."

"I kept him quiet when I saw the fish monster that made that mess. I didn't want him to do anything _stupid_ and _irrational_ like you did."

"What do you mean, Pop?"

"You know exactly what I mean! The Pines saw everything you did! Didn't you realize that you could be jeopardizin' your _very life_?! No one can know, Lily! I thought you knew that. There's no one you can trust in Gravity Falls."

"But I trust my friends! They weren't suspicious, and they needed me to do that! They might have been hurt if I didn't intervene. That was all I was doing, I swear!"

"Doesn't matter. They saw what you did, and there were questions about it. You can't do stuff like that and expect people to ignore it. You can't reveal your powers, even if other people's lives are in danger."

Lily's feelings wilted like dying flowers. "Are you gonna punish me?

"You disobeyed me. You left your post. You pretty much blew your cover. You're not goin' back."

"What?! I'm not allowed back at the Mystery Shack?"

"Not until you can prove to me that you can go there without my supervision. In order for that to happen, you're gonna need to grow up. _Fast._"

Lily faced her window, refusing to meet her grandfather's eyes. _How could he do this? I had to save them! It was the only way! It's not fair!_

"You're gonna need to get to bed early tonight, Lily. Your survival training with Jack starts tomorrow."

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Dipper sat in his room with Mabel while she tried brushing pine needles out of her hair. He was discussing a topic of great concern and importance: obviously, Lily.

"I still can't over it, Mabel," he told her. "What's up with Lily?"

"Besides the fact that she _enthralls_ you with her beauty?" His sister pretended to swoon on her bed.

"Mabel, I'm serious here! You saw what she did back there. There's no way anyone could have done that."

"Didn't you hear her? She was raised in an aquar-"

"She was _lying_, Mabel! Couldn't you tell? Lily's hiding something; something _huge_." Dipper pulled his Journal from his vest and thumbed through it. "And I need to figure out _what_."

Mabel sat up in her bed, rolled her eyes. "Come on, Dipper. Lily's a totally normal girl from out of town. You'd never find anything in the book that would match her – "

"'With long hair, gentle eyes, and a soothing voice, these creatures are the most beguiling to ever reside in Gravity Falls. But be wary, for they have been known to lure many a man to his death in the lake with their songs. Should you hear them sing, don't expect to live. Never interact with' – oh my gosh!"

"What is it, Dipper?"

Dipper turned the page to show Mabel. In it, there was a picture of a girl with a mermaid tail sitting on rock, singing the notes of a song against a night background. It looked just like Lily!

"Lily is a _siren!_"

LV VKH, GLSSHU?


End file.
